The author Malcolm Gladwell some time ago published a series of essay entitled, “The Tipping Point,” which examined the phenomena of just when a certain social trend can cross a threshold and “tip” behavior one way or another. In that regard, we wonder when the tipping point will come for our beloved West Chester.

At what juncture will people fro outside our community look at the behavior that is, to some degree, condoned and encouraged by irresponsible restaurant and bar owners, university administrators, and borough officials, and decide, ‘You know, we just don’t want to go there any more?”

The reaction that we heard from borough residents and those visiting the communtiy about the behavior of young people during the West Chester University Homecoming Weekend leads us to believe that we may be approaching that threshold. Drunken groups swaying on downtown streets in the early afternoon, multiple alcohol fueled fights along the Gay Street corridor, and dozens and dozens of citations issued by police for behavior that would not have been thought imaginable years ago.

It is only a mater of time, we believe, that the situation will become uncontrollable by our police department. On Saturday, the drunken behavior resulted in a serious injury to one police officer, Greg Cugino, who has spent his life in the West Chester community and has devoted his professional career to upholding the law here. Tat his injuries were not life-threatening we can only be grateful for.

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On Wednesday, police provided preliminary statistics Wednesday revealing the number of arrests and citations recorded by police between Oct. 15 and Oct. 21, the homecoming weekend period. During that time, a total of 86 people were arrested for misdemeanors and more than 117 summary citations were issued for quality of life crimes in incidents linked to alcohol and disorderly behavior. Police recorded 22 underage drinking violations, 36 open container violations, and 21 noise violations. Police Chief Scott Bohn said a “vast majority” of the arrests and citations occurred during Saturday’s homecoming celebration.

Bohn said he was disappointed with the disruptive behavior over the weekend, and added that the police department would analyze the final data and address the behavior appropriately. That will include informing university officials of any students that were arrested or cited, Bohn said.

According to Bohn, this year’s homecoming celebration appeared to draw higher numbers than usual and he believed 99 percent of the rowdy behavior was fueled by alcohol. “I thought that this particular year it appeared that there was a larger number of people than normal,” Bohn said. “The appearance of some of the neighborhoods the following day was extremely disappointing, but I don’t believe the behavior is representative of our community as a whole.”

That is true. But we wonder at what point the rotten apples in the barrel begin to outnumber the fresh ones, and at what point the borough will begin to reek with their stench on a more permanent basis.